The Trach Remains

Hey everyone,

Thank you so much for all the prayers, comments and shares. Judah is in recovery and doing well, but things have taken a pretty sharp turn from what we were expecting to happen today.

During the bronchoscopy they did find scar tissue in his upper airways. It was our understanding that if that was the case, they would take him directly into surgery and remove the scar tissue today. This was not the case. We’re not sure if we misunderstood or if we were given wrong information, but Judah wouldn’t even be able to undergo that procedure until the fall or even a year from now. We try hard to ask a lot of questions and make sure we have a good understanding of everything that’s going on, so we’re not sure where the breakdown in communication happened. This procedure is a “bigger deal” and will require some planning as well as him being a little older.

While he was “under,” they used a balloon to dilate the area where he has scar tissue. At the moment, the area has been stretched to an “acceptable” diameter. Whether or not it will remain stretched, we’ll have to wait to find out.

In 6-8 weeks they will do another bronchoscopy to see if the area has remained stretched and open, or if the scar tissue in that area has narrowed his airway again. If his airway remains stretched, we will likely take steps to remove the trach while we’re in the hospital at that time. If his airway is narrowed again, we will begin planning the surgery to remove the scar tissue and reconstruct his airway. The reason we would have to wait until the fall or a year from now is because they would need a piece of cartilage from his ribs to help reinforce his airway, and that cartilage won’t be mature enough to “harvest” until around age 2. The doctors are confident that the scar tissue is from the breathing tube he had for his first few months, and not something congenital.

So, the trach will remain in and little will change for us in the near future. We’re a little disappointed, but so thankful to not be taking any steps backward! We will continue to trust in our God.

I apologize if my Facebook status was misleading. I was just trying to keep it simple and let you all know Judah was doing okay.

We are heading home now. We will update again tonight if there are any changes.